


Eucalyptuses

by softwhiskeyjack



Category: Fire Emblem: If | Fire Emblem: Fates
Genre: 5 Times, Dragon transformation, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-30
Updated: 2016-04-30
Packaged: 2018-06-05 09:36:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6699715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softwhiskeyjack/pseuds/softwhiskeyjack
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Four times she protected him and the one time he protected her.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Eucalyptuses

**Author's Note:**

> For the anon request: "If you’d like to try some more writing would you be able to write some m!kamui/hinoka stuff? Hinoka has become my favorite fates character and I’d love to see someone have a shot at writing her."
> 
> Another piece archived from Tumblr. Pretty proud of the fancy schmancy formatting in this one.

**I.**

They don’t think he has any memories of them from when he was a child.

But he does. He remembers blurry images and faint sensations; a bright shock of vibrant red hair on a face that was fierce even when she was young.

He remembers the fear he had of the dark and the hand that gripped his tightly even though it was barely any larger than his.

He remembers hearing a young girlish voice.

“Don’t wowwy. I’ll pwotect you.”

He remembers the promise that would define them.

**II.**

He enjoys watching her groom her pegasus; the bond between the two clear to see.

“Why don’t you join me instead of lurking over there?”

Kamui jolts at the sound of Hinoka calling out to him. He hadn’t wanted to disturb her and had been content to watch from his position leaning against a tree, but it turns out that she had known he was there from the start.

He starts to walk over to her with a sheepish smile, “Sorry, sister, I didn’t want to disturb you.”

She glances at him out of the corner of her eyes and smiles before continuing to brush her pegasus. “You could never disturb me, and you’re always welcome to seek me out.”

Her pegasus leans forward to nibble at his clothes when he finally comes up beside Hinoka. “Sorry, I don’t have anything for you.” He murmurs and strokes the pegasus’ head. It huffs loudly and turns its head away.

“Uh oh, I don’t think she likes you very much now.”

He can hear the amusement in her voice. “It’s a she?”

“Mhm. Here, you’ll get on her good side if you help me brush her.”

Hinoka holds out another brush for him but, before he can take it, her eyes narrow and she drops the brush. In a motion that is almost too fast for him to follow she draws out the knife on her belt and throws it past him.

He inhales sharply at the sensation of the blade slicing through the air beside him and turns around to see a snake pinned straight through its head by the knife. Her pegasus shifts nervously beside him.

“Prairie snake,” Hinoka tells him when she notices the confused look on his face, “They live in these short grasses and have a poisonous bite. Most of the time they can’t pierce through our shoes but…” Her eyes drop to his uncovered feet.

“Sorry, I’m still not used to these lands I guess.” He rubs the back of his head self-consciously.

“You’ve never had the chance to grow up here so it makes sense that you wouldn’t know about the wildlife.” Her expression turns dark, as it always does whenever she’s reminded about his lack of a childhood with them, but then she starts to smile again. “But don’t worry, as your… big sister I’ll continue to protect you until you learn.”

**III.**

He’s not surprised to hear footsteps coming up from behind him; it’s not like he’s in an inconspicuous place. Hinoka’s pegasus raises her head from her grazing and whickers in greeting to her rider. But when Hinoka comes to stand beside him, he only continues his brushing motions.

The silence continues on, broken only by her pegasus snorting when he presses too hard with the brush. “Sorry,” he murmurs and forcibly relaxes his stiff body.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Do you know that you’re the first person to actually ask me that instead of going on a tirade about how terrible Nohr is?” He smiles wryly but keeps his eyes on his hands. “You don’t have to force yourself to ask. I know how much you hate them too for taking me away.”

She hesitates but then reaches out and places her hand on top of his, stopping his brushing.

“Even though I don’t like them… I know how important they are to you. They were the people you grew up with and consider your siblings.”

“Except they don’t see me like that anymore.” 

The words come out more hurt than he intends and he has to force himself to swallow past the lump in his throat. He can still hear Leon’s words ringing in his head; words designed to hurt and tear at him. Leon had flatly rejected him as their brother.

_“You’re just a traitor!”_

He doesn’t realize that he’s curled his hands into fists until he feels her pry them open and slip her hands between his. “Kamui…”

“Sorry… I know this must be hard on you and Brother Ryouma too, seeing me like this. I just wish they’d listen to me so that we could stop fighting… and then I’d have two sets of siblings.” He smiles lopsidedly and tries to withdraw his hands, but she tightens her grip.

“Actually, I think it’s time you learned the truth. It doesn’t need to change anything between us, but I was given this letter by Lady Mikoto before she passed away and it says…”

**IV.**

He’s glad when the guard in front of the tent takes one look at him and steps aside. He doesn’t think he has any civility or patience in him right now to deal with other people.

He storms into the tent and finds his target sitting on a stool; a healer is beside her and tightening bandages around her upper arm.

“What did you think you were doing!?”

Hinoka gives him a cool look but doesn’t respond. She gestures at the healer, who has paused to look between them, to continue her treatment.

Kamui trembles with rage, “Answer me! You’ve been taking unnecessary risks lately–”

“Oh?” She interrupts him with a loud scoff. “And you haven’t?”

He flinches as if he was physically struck. He can’t refute her words because she isn’t wrong but he can’t let her know that. “That’s different. The strategies I’ve come up with need me up there.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it.” Hinoka snaps back before standing up, her arm finally bandaged tightly. She waves at the healer to leave and the healer does so with a relieved expression, not wanting to stay any longer in this tense atmosphere. “Whatever, it doesn’t matter. If you’re going to be up there then I will too so that I can protect you as…”

She stops speaking with a strange expression on her face.

“As?” He pounces on her hesitation with a bitter smile. “As what? My big sister? Except you aren’t my big sister.”

It shouldn’t matter. It shouldn’t matter because doesn’t he still think of himself as a brother to his siblings in Nohr despite not being connected by blood? And yet… why has he been feeling like he’s losing two families? He knows it’s unfair to take out his anger on Hinoka. He knows he shouldn’t be taking risks like this.

And yet he can’t stop.

Hinoka clenches her fist and he almost thinks she’ll slug him in the face, but she only snarls out, “As someone who loves you, dammit!”

His mouth parts in shock at her words. She freezes as well and starts to turn red but makes no move to take back her words.

“I love you… as a man. And I don’t want to see you get hurt. So if you’re going to keep insisting on throwing yourself into the front lines like that then I’ll–”

He reaches out and yanks her into his chest, barely remembering to avoid pressing on her injury. “You idiot… I love you too. If you can’t bear seeing me hurt then how do you think I feel when I see you getting hurt? Especially because of me?” He buries his face into her hair.

“… I’m sorry.” He feels her arms wrap around him tentatively.

“… I’m sorry too.”

“Do you really love me? Not as a sister but…”

“I do. Do you really love me too? Not as a brother but…”

“Yes.”

**V.**

Instinct has him turning his head in her direction even before her scream reaches him. She’s plummeting from the sky and her pegasus scrabbles to dive after her but is warded off by a hail of arrows. He feels everything slowing down.

_He can’t breathe._

She’s not going to survive. Not at that height. There’s nothing underneath her but hard plains and enemies.

_He’s drowning._

None of their other flyers are close enough to rescue her either, especially with the horde of enemy archers stationed on the cliffs.

_He’s being dragged down._  
_Sinking._

_Sinking._

_Sinking._

He feels like he’s being crushed. Like something massive is surrounding him. Blood is rushing through his ears. Faintly, he can hear the sound of something cracking and shattering. 

Everything turns to black.

…

There’s a song being sung in the distance but it’s muffled, as if reaching him through miles and miles of water. It hurts though. It grates. He feels like someone is pouring salt on an exposed nerve and he wants to silence it.

But he’s not supposed to move from his position. He doesn’t know why but he just knows that he can’t move. And so he can only turn his head and bellow loudly in the direction of the song, lashing his tail and gouging deep furrows into the ground with it.

There’s a touch on him. He instinctively wants to rear back and strike out but something deep within him holds still at the sensation. His chest heaves with the effort it takes to not move and he lowers his head to the thing that dared to touch him.

He can’t see very well but he can see the bright blaze of red underneath him.

Red.

There’s something important about that color.

He thinks… he is supposed to like it. No, he does like it. He knows he likes it.

“… me… ck… ome… ba…”

The touch continues, stroking his muzzle over and over again, and he can feel himself start to tremble. He digs his claws into the ground and flexes his fingers, ripping up chunks of dirt, as he struggles to come up from the torrent of emotions and instincts buffeting him. There’s something about that voice.

“Come back, Kamui!”

Between one blink and the next, he finds himself kneeling over Hinoka in human form again. He swallows hard, feeling his throat burn, and tries to remember how to speak.

“Don’t… ever do that again.” He can still hear the dragon in his voice; a crushing presence that threads through every syllable and makes each word a guttural and harsh growl.

He slides his hands around her face, cupping her cheeks, and brushes away the wet strands of hair that are plastered to her face. He barely notices their soaked surroundings, as if a flash flood had occurred.

But his dragon blood is still close to the surface; a whirlpool of instinct, rage, and power, thrumming through his entire body. He’s shaking and he feels like he’s going to fall apart at any moment, dashed to pieces in the overwhelming rapids of the dragon blood.

He blames that blood on his next action, when he lifts her head up and crushes his mouth onto hers desperately.


End file.
